The embodiments herein relate generally to devices for assisting the lifting of persons who are temporarily or permanently incapacitated, and must be moved from a prone or sitting position to an upright or higher elevation. In that regard, harnesses have been used for years to lift persons as well as animals. Harnesses generally consist of one or more straps that may be placed around the person or animal and secured in place to “lift” the person or animal from one position to another.
Other harness-related devices have been disclosed as well. For example, the reader is directed to such prior references as U.S. Pat. No. 5,269,324, entitled Patient lifting harness and method of use; U.S. Pat. No. 5,647,378, entitled Invalid support belt, U.S. Pat. No. 5,896,859, entitled Transfer belt, U.S. Pat. No. 6,122,778, entitled Lift vest, U.S. Pat. No. 6,581,222, entitled Lifting sling, U.S. Pat. No. 7,627,912 entitled Portable patient transfer system, U.S. Pat. No. 7,945,975, entitled Patient assistance device, and Design Pat. No. D636,964, entitled Patient assistance vest. It is not known whether any of these devices have been commercialized or to any level of success.
A search of the internet has revealed devices being commercialized by Kendrick, known as the Kendrick Extrication Device, and a device by Smart Life Systems. None of these devices, including those disclosed in the references cites above, work as efficiently or as effectively as they should for various reasons. Indeed, emergency medical personnel have commented at the time of this application on the lack of adequate patient lifting devices in the marketplace given the variety of circumstances encountered by EMTs. Embodiments of the present invention address at least some of the disadvantages of the prior devices.